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DDEV v1.25.0: A New Era of Project Sharing with Cloudflare Tunnels

· 3 min read
Victor Jimenez
Victor Jimenez
Software Engineer & AI Agent Builder

DDEV, the open-source local development tool, has long been a staple for web developers. With its v1.25.0 release, it fundamentally improves how we share work in progress, introducing a modular share provider system with Cloudflare Tunnel as the star.

The Problem: The Old Share Workflow​

Previously, ddev share relied exclusively on ngrok. While functional, this approach had several pain points:

  • Account Required: Users needed an ngrok account and an authtoken configured to get reliable and long-lasting URLs.
  • Opaque Process: The underlying mechanism was a bit of a black box, making it difficult to troubleshoot when things went wrong.
  • Rate-Limiting: The free ngrok tier has limitations that could be disruptive for active collaboration sessions with clients or team members.
  • Configuration Overhead: Managing the ngrok token and ensuring it was correctly configured for DDEV added an extra setup step for developers.

This friction often made sharing a quick preview of a site more trouble than it was worth.

The Solution: Modular Providers and Cloudflare Tunnels​

DDEV v1.25.0 completely reworks the ddev share command, making it extensible through a provider system. The default and most exciting new provider is cloudflare, which leverages Cloudflare's Ingress Rules and Quick Tunnels.

This new system is incredibly simple to use and requires zero configuration. No accounts, no API keys, no tokens.

To share your project, you now simply run:

ddev share --provider cloudflare

DDEV handles the rest, creating a secure tunnel from your local project to a public URL.

How It Works: The Cloudflare Tunnel Architecture​

The Cloudflare provider uses a temporary, on-the-fly tunnel that securely exposes your local DDEV instance to the internet.

Here is a simplified diagram of the architecture:

This approach is not only simpler but also more robust and secure than the previous ngrok implementation.

Provider Comparison​

FeatureLegacy ngrok ProviderNew Cloudflare Provider
Account RequiredYesNo
AuthenticationAuth TokenNone
Configurationddev config global --ngrok-token=<token>None
URL StabilityVariable (depends on account)Stable for session
ExtensibilityNoneModular system allows new providers

What I Learned​

  • The new cloudflare provider in ddev share is a game-changer for ad-hoc project sharing, removing all setup friction.
  • This is a perfect example of a tool improving developer experience by abstracting away complex configuration. The modular architecture is a smart design choice, paving the way for future integrations.
  • For anyone who previously found ddev share cumbersome, it's time to give it another look. It's now a genuinely useful tool for quick collaboration.

References​